Kingsman star Taron Egerton has claimed that he turned down the role of a young Han Solo in the Star Wars prequel Solo: A Star Wars Story.
The actor revealed that he got as far as donning the character’s famous costume and meeting the character of Chewbacca but ultimately turned it down.
Alden Ehrenreich (Hail, Ceasar!) was eventually cast as the younger version of Harrison Ford’s buccanneering space smuggler, though the film – and Ehrenreich’s performance – was met with mixed reviews.
Egerton discussed the role during an appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast. “I’ll be honest, I got on the Falcon,” he said, referring to Han Solo’s spacecraft, the Millenium Falcon.
“I was with Chewie. I was in the full costume,” he continued. “I felt like I got there, I did it, I lived it.”
He ultimately felt that he would not have suited the role of a younger Ford, and stepped away during the following round of auditions.
“It just felt to me like I didn’t feel... like you know when we mentioned earlier, that thing when I read the Kingsman script and I was like, ‘This is… I’ve gotta do this. This is my part,’” he said. “I just didn’t feel it.”
While he had previously spoken about wanting to be considered for the role, the podcast appearance marks the first time Egerton has confirmed he auditioned for Solo.
“It’s far enough in the past now that I feel I can say that,” he added. “I hope no one feels annoyed that I have said it.”
